Senpai
by TheFluffyPrince
Summary: It's been a year since Rin had graduated from Samezuka and he was back to help train the new students of the swim team. However, he quickly learns that a lot has changed since his time at Samezuka.


**gA/N: I'm a mild fan of Rin x Nitori, so I decided that I might as well write at least one story with them. And I really like the whole idea where the shotas in the show suddenly turn into hot, tall guys in their third year. Yeah. **

**Also, I've got no idea if Rin is a first or second year, since all the students of Samezuka wear the same outfit. So, I'm just assuming that Rin was one year above Nitori. **

**Pairing: RinTori**

**Warning: Guys kissing, language**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Free!/Swimming anime**

* * *

A yawn left Rin's mouth as he sat on the poolside, watching the water with a bored gaze. Today marked the first day of swimming practice for the Samezuka swim team and he had been called in to help coach the first years. There were supposed to be someone else along with him (he pretty much assumed that it was Seijuurou), but he had no idea where he was at the moment. Not that it really mattered to him. All that he cared about was getting the kids started on their swimming regimen and then heading back home.

Lazily kicking his feet through the water, Rin took the time to look around the room for a moment. Nothing had really changed in the room. In fact, the school was pretty much the same as well. It almost felt like he was a student again, walking through and seeing all the students heading to their classes. The only difference that he felt between walking through the school about a year or two ago and walking through the school now was the fact that he was in no rush. He didn't have any classes to reach, unlike the kids who were running through the halls to beat the bell. He wasn't shoving his breakfast or lunch down his throat while he ran down the halls.

That was one thing that he didn't miss about school.

Graduating from Samezuka was pretty lackluster, for the most part. One day, he was at school, and the next, he was sitting at home, no longer a student of Samezuka. He had been lucky enough to be recruited by a professional swim team, so he didn't have to sit at home like some lazy pig. It wasn't the Olympics by any means, but it definitely opened doors for him. He had met with several recruiters, as well as trainers who were involved with the Olympic team. It was pretty much on the road to his dream.

Hearing the door to the pool open suddenly, Rin lifted his gaze up and looked to see who was coming inside. There were still about twenty minutes until swim practice started, so it probably wasn't any of the swim team. So, when he saw a tall male walking towards him with grey hair, his eyebrows furrowed in mild confusion. He didn't recognize the guy at all. He didn't look like a first year, based on his size. Although, basing what year a student was in just on size alone wasn't always accurate. The uniform didn't help at all, since all students wore the same uniform all three years. Not to mention, the kid wasn't even looking in his general direction, so he couldn't even tell what his face looked like.

So, when the kid suddenly looked towards him and smiled brightly, Rin found himself raising an eyebrow. "Rin-senpai!"

_"Eh?!"_ Rin said, his other eyebrow raising up in confusion. That voice...sounded familiar. Very familiar. So familiar that he had to shake his head and mentally hear the voice again.

He stared at the kid in horror as he came barreling towards him, a look of bliss on his face. It wasn't until the kid was practically in his face, hugging him tightly and lifting him up that Rin finally snapped out of his daze. Scowling, he smacked the kid alongside his head and tried to push him away, but to no avail. Who the hell was this kid anyway?! "Put me down, you fucking brat!" he snarled out, about to punch the kid right in the face when the boy looked up at him.

Freezing, Rin stared down at the boy in shock, mouth open wide. His eyes locked on the familiar mole and he found his eyes snapping back to the boy's eyes in an instant. Mouth opening and closing in response, Rin found that he couldn't even talk. His shock at the sight in front of him had caught him off guard completely. This kid...who had to be well over six feet tall and who had muscles that he had only seen on Seijuurou and Makoto...was Nitori. The small, scrawny, whiny first year that always seemed to hang around him. The same boy who had a crush on him during his time at Samezuka. The kid who he had always made passing glances at, but never truly looked at before.

Well, he sure was looking now.

"N-Nitori...," Rin choked out, still not able to find any words.

A bright grin came to Nitori's face and he hugged Rin even tighter before placing him down on the floor. "Rin-senpai! It's so great to see you again! I didn't think that I'd get to see you again after you graduated," he said happily, a familiar twinkle coming to his eyes.

Grunting, Rin hissed softly as he moved his sore body. It looked as though Nitori's appearance wasn't the only thing that had changed. The brat had gotten stronger as well. Not to mention, his voice was now several octaves deeper. Somehow, it made Rin feel kind of small in comparison. He wasn't used to being smaller than people, especially not to such a drastic degree. Nitori had to be at least a head or two taller than him. Not to mention, his entire torso was about the same width as his entire body.

It was overwhelming.

"N-Nitori...you...grew. A lot," Rin said finally, voice croaking a bit.

A soft chuckle left Nitori's mouth and he nodded his head, still grinning at the redhead. "Mhmm! My doctor told me that I had one last growth spurt over the summer. Plus, I've been going to the gym to prepare myself more for this swim season, since I'm going to be Captain this year!"

"C-Captain?!" Rin exclaimed, more and more surprised by the second. Nitori, the boy that he thought had potential but was lacking a certain drive, was now the Captain of the Samezuka swim team...how times have changed...

Looking up at Nitori again, Rin inspected the boy for a moment. He didn't even look like the same boy that he knew. It was like looking at a completely different person. Of course, Nitori had certain aspects to him that were the same as when they had gone to school together. The mole on Nitori's face was still present, as well as the smile that always seemed to be on his face (unless he was upset). Not to mention, the grey hair, which was a little bit longer than he remembered it being.

The pit of Rin's stomach tightened up and he swallowed thickly. A shiver went down his spine and everything inside of him felt on edge. Averting his gaze away, Rin noticed that there were some other kids walking into the room now, holding onto bags and books. He recognized a couple of the swimmers who were on the team last year. But along with those students, there were some students that were new and looked it, if their nervous gazes around said anything.

The sound of the doors slamming open caused everyone in the room to jump before looking at whoever made the noise. Rin raised an eyebrow before sighing roughly, recognizing Seijuurou grinning like an idiot while walking towards him. "Do you have to make so much noise, idiot?"

"Hahaha, it's nice to see you too, Rin! And Nitori, I'm glad to see that you're still on the team!" Seijuurou said happily, patting the younger boy on the back.

A faint blush came to Nitori's face, which seemed a bit out of place, given his stature. "Thanks, Captain."

Seijuurou's face screwed up and he waved his hand dismissively. "Hey now, I'm not your Captain any more. If I heard correctly, you're the new Captain!"

"Yeah, I am! I was so surprised to get the letter saying that! But I don't think I'll be as good of a Captain as you were...," Nitori trailed off, smiling sheepishly.

"Now hey. I'm sure you'll be a great captain, Nitori! I've got no doubt about that. Right, Rin?" Seijuurou said, smacking Rin right on his arm.

Glaring at the ex-Captain, Rin grumbled underneath his breath. His head bowed and he looked at Nitori out of the corner of his eyes before scoffing. "...Yeah, you'll be fine."

A bright smile came to Nitori's face and before Rin knew what what happening, he found himself being lifted up into the air again. Grunting at the movement, Rin smacked Nitori across his head, flailing his legs slightly. "Put me down, Nitori!"

* * *

"You call that a butterfly stroke?! The amateurs at Iwatobi swim better than you!" Rin shouted from the edge of the pool, scowling at the new students as they botched up yet another stroke.

This practice was much too stressful on him, and it had only been an hour. There was no way that he could deal with these idiots anymore if it continued on like this. Groaning and rubbing his eyes, Rin turned away from the horrid sight of the new swimmers and looked over to where Seijuurou was helping out the old members of the swim team. Which, come to think of it, how did he get roped into helping out the new kids anyway? Seijuurou was much better equipped to help out people of their caliber.

Hearing the sound of someone smacking the side of the pool, Rin immediately stopped his stopwatch and glanced down at the time before scowling. "Pathetic time. Do it again and this time, swim faster," he snarled, glaring down at the kid.

A strangled whimper left the kid's mouth before he began swimming again. He just shook his head and sighed. Such slack offs. So used to lazing around and doing nothing. They needed a firm hand to teach them that swimming wasn't all fun and games. It wasn't just some sport that one could jump into and start without any kind of training. Swimming took hard work, commitment, and drive. And just by looking at the new crowd, he could tell that very few of them had even one of those traits.

He'd be fixing that by the end of this practice.

"Rin-senpai, I don't think you need to be so hard on them. It is just the first practice," a voice said behind him.

Grunting, Rin glanced over his shoulder and noticed Nitori standing behind him with a faint frown on his face. Rolling his eyes, the redhead just waved his hand dismissively. "The first practice is the most important one. If they slack off now, then they're going to continue to slack off in the next practices," he explained, turning his attention back towards the pool.

A soft chuckle came from behind him before a hand rested on his shoulder, pulling him back a bit. Stumbling, Rin snapped his head back towards Nitori, a glare on his face. Nitori just smiled back at him, as though his look didn't mean a thing to him. Was his intimidation tactics lacking that much? He remembered the time when he could frighten Nitori just with one look and a growl. And yet now, all that the grey-haired boy was doing was laughing at him, as though he was there for his amusement for something.

It pissed him off.

"Nitori-" He growled out, only to be cut off by a hand pressing against the back of his neck.

"Just calm down, Rin. They'll be fine. How about you let me handle the rest of their practice?" Nitori asked, tightening his grip just a bit before he brushed his way past the redhead, taking the stopwatch away from him.

Finding himself speechless for the second time that day, Rin could do nothing else but stare at Nitori as he called over the new swim team members. There was a serious expression on his face, one that Rin had only seen a handful of times when Nitori decided to act serious. But those looks were different from this one. This look was much more mature and calm. Much more calculating. It almost reminded him a bit of Seijuurou. The look of a captain...

Shaking his head, Rin averted his gaze from Nitori and went to sit down on one of the nearby benches. Why was he so caught up on how much Nitori changed anyway? Normally, people didn't linger on such things. Sure, it came as a surprise to see Nitori is such a way after a year of not seeing him. But wouldn't most people get past that by now, especially with those that they were close to? After all, Nitori was just an old classmate of his. They shared dorms, occasionally ate with each other, and had a few conversations with each other. At the most, they were friends. But he wouldn't call them friends.

So then, why was he so caught up on the grey-haired brat?

* * *

The feeling of the water rushing past him as Rin did laps in the pool brought a sense of freedom that he hadn't experienced in a while. Sure, he had been able to swim during his time after school, since he was still training to try and go to the Olympics. But his training never really offered the same feeling as just swimming in a pool out of enjoyment. He was often until the pressure of time or strength whenever he was training. But on his own time...swimming was just a way of life to him. It was a feeling that many overlooked and even unappreciated. The water swallowing him up and surrounding him on all sides...

Wow, he really sounded like Haruka right now.

Diving under the surface of the water, Rin kicked his legs and propelled himself forward. He wasn't racing, nor was he aiming for any kind of record. He was just...swimming. Coming up to the wall, Rin turned his body around and pushed himself off of the water with his feet, swimming the opposite direction. He let the force of the push fuel his speed up until he started to slow down. Upon losing the power of his push, Rin moved up to the surface of the water and swam over towards the other side of the pool.

So caught up in swimming in the pool, Rin missed the sound of the door opening and the sound of footsteps walking towards the spot where his bag was resting. As his hand slammed against the wall of the pool, Rin shot his head out of the water, pulling off his headcap and goggles, wiping the water off of his face. Noticing someone standing a few feet away from him, the redhead lifted his head up and his eyes widened a bit.

"Nitori?" he asked, schooling his expression so that he didn't look as surprised as he felt. What was the other male doing here anyway? Wasn't it curfew for students at this time of night? Not that he could really talk, since he remembered being out past curfew several times while he was in school. But still.

"What are you doing here, Nitori?" he asked gruffly, about to pull himself out of the pool when he saw Nitori moving to remove his shirt.

Shrugging off his shirt and throwing it down on top of Rin's bag, Nitori just gave a crooked smile and hummed softly. "I thought that you'd probably be out here, so I wanted to come and join you in the pool before I headed off to bed," he said, taking off his pants to reveal his swimsuit underneath.

Flushing a bit, Rin stared at Nitori before he pierced his lips together and bowed his head. This was a bad idea. This was a _really_ bad idea. Something was wrong with him, had been wrong with him the entire day ever since he had seen Nitori after so long. Being in close proximity with him in a pool while they were half naked wouldn't help at all.

So, Rin looked up at Nitori, fully prepared to tell the other male that he wasn't going to swim with him because he was seriously screwed in the head at the moment, only to stop. There was a particular gleam in the grey-haired boy's eyes that made him stop what he was doing. The look was just so...innocent and vulnerable. It silently begged for him to let him join in...for the opportunity to swim together. It reminded him a bit of the Nitori that he knew before.

"...Whatever," Rin grumbled, falling back into the pool with a splash. He supposed that he could stay in the water for a few more minutes or so. What was the worst that could happen?

Rolling his eyes at the grin that came to Nitori's face, Rin turned himself over so that he was floating on his back. His legs lazily kicked through the water, pushing him across the surface of the water. He could feel eyes watching him for a few moments before the sound of a splash echoed through the silent room. Glancing out of the corner of his eyes, Rin saw Nitori kicking around in the water like some first year student who's never been in a pool before.

The two of them stayed a fair distance away from each other, just floating around the pool and enjoying the water. Occasionally, they would glance towards each other and mumble out a few words in conversation, but that was about the extent of their contact for the few few minutes or so. It wasn't until Rin finally grew tired of floating around in the water and started heading back towards the edge of the pool that their proximity grew much closer.

Hands on the edge of the pool, Rin made to get himself out of the water (for the second time that day), when hands grabbed onto his hips, pulling him right back in. Yelping loudly, the redhead snarled and glared back at Nitori, who had that insufferable glimmer in his eyes. He tried to move away from the other male's grip, but it was too strong. But despite that, Rin still attempted to try and get away from Nitori.

It wasn't until he was forcibly turned around, his back pressing against the cold wall of the pool, that he finally ceased his movements and stared up at Nitori with a stormy expression. There was a mysterious expression on the other male's face. Nitori's eyes were flickering over him, inspecting him closely. It made Rin uncomfortable just being under his gaze. Fists clenching up for a moment, the redhead brought his hands and pressed them on Nitori's chest, fully prepared to push him away.

Before he could do so though, Nitori was suddenly right in his face, those eyes of his glimmering with some sort of promise. Sucking in a harsh breath, Rin tried to back up (but he couldn't, due to Nitori's tight grip around his waist). "Nitori-" he started to growl out, only for the grey-haired boy to suddenly cut him off by pressing his lips against his.

Rin's eyes widened comically at the kiss and his breath hitched in shock. Nitori...was kissing him. _Kissing him_. Their lips were pressing against each other, a strange gentleness to the kiss. And Rin had absolutely no idea how to deal or respond to it. He had never been kissed this way before, especially not by someone like Nitori. So, while the other male pressed up against him, Rin just stood shell-shocked, hands still pressed up against Nitori's chest.

When Nitori pulled away a few seconds later, Rin's mouth immediately opened in response. "What the hell was that?!" he asked, voice shaking slightly.

Licking his lips, the grey-haired boy stared at Rin for a moment before smiling slightly. "A kiss," he said simply.

Sputtering in outrage, Rin's face flushed and he smacked Nitori's chest. "I know that, dumbass! Why did you kiss me?!"

Almost at once, a serious glint entered Nitori's eyes and an uncharacteristic smirk came to his face, causing warning bells to go off in his head. "Nito-"

Rin was cut off once again by Nitori, this time by his finger pressing up against his lips. "Shhhh...just enjoy this, Rin-senpai," he whispered before moving in close again, his lips grazing against Rin's.

Breath hitching in anticipation, the redhead stared at Nitori, not quite sure what to say. He should be pushing the third year away from his body, should be kicking him and beating him to a pulp. But instead of doing that, all he was doing was sitting right in Nitori's grip. His stomach was twisting up with emotion while the rest of his body was unresponsive.

So, when Nitori's lips pressed against his again for a second time, he found himself remaining still again. That didn't deter the other male though, he just continued kissing him and rubbing the flesh of his hip with his thumbs. The touch made Rin slowly relax into Nitori's grip, which caused the other male to kiss him a bit harder. Rin's lips parted at the sudden press, which gave Nitori the opportunity to deepen the kiss, which he took.

Feeling the slick tongue slip into his mouth, Rin finally snapped out of his mental stillness and pushed Nitori away, bringing a hand to his mouth in shock. Without waiting to see what the other male would do, Rin pulled himself out of the pool and walked over towards his bags, picking them and draped his towel over his body, not even bothering to dry himself off. Without even looking back, the redhead quickly began walking towards the door on the other side of the room.

However, he failed to realize that Nitori was following directly behind him, having got out of the pool almost right after he picked up his bag. So, as his hand was curling around the doorknob to open the door, Nitori ran up behind him, quickly slamming his hand against the door to shut it. Gasping as the knob slipped right out of his hand and the door shut without a single word, Rin turned around immediately, snapping his head up to look at the other male in shock.

Nitori was looking down at him with an unreadable expression on his face. Swallowing thickly, Rin felt himself shaking a little bit under the intense gaze. He wanted nothing more than to shield himself away from Nitori's eyes. However, he quickly shook that thought out of his head. What was he even thinking?! This was Nitori he was talking – thinking – about! The little boy who always trailed after him when they were in school together. He was practically a puppy compared to him! So, why was he so afraid of him?

"_Because he's practically twice your size and could beat the crap out of you if he wanted," _his mind supplied. A wince came to his face and he averted his eyes, looking down to the ground in shame.

...That would explain it. He knew that Nitori wouldn't want to do that though, even with his sudden growth spurt. After all, the other male still had that gentle disposition surrounding him. However, he would admit...Nitori's size was very daunting. So daunting that it was hard for him to concentrate.

Licking his lips nervously, Rin tried to push Nitori away, but to no avail. "What do you think you're doing, Nitori. Let me out!"

"Why are you leaving, Rin-senpai? We just started swimming," he said softly, eyebrows furrowing.

Rin stared at Nitori as though he were crazy, wondering if he truly understood why he had rushed out of the pool so quickly. There was no way that the boy's memory was that horrid. He knew what he had done! He couldn't be so...so blind to how Rin had felt afterwards!

"Y-you kissed me!" Rin stammered out, pressing himself against the door and looking up at Nitori, completely flustered.

A teasing smile came to Nitori's face and he leaned down a bit, looking Rin right in the eyes. "Mmm...I did."

This brat...-! "Why did you do it?" Rin snapped out in irritation. That smile was really starting to grate on his nerves.

Blinking for a moment, Nitori hummed softly, tapping his chin with his finger before shrugging his shoulders. "Because I wanted to."

"That's not an answer, brat!" It looked as though along with getting taller and stronger, Nitori became a smartass as well.

Chuckling softly, Nitori waved his hand dismissively in the air. He tipped his head to the side, giving Rin a gentle look. "But it's true. I kissed you because I wanted to. I've wanted to do it for a long time, in fact. But you're kind of...intimidating to be around. So, I couldn't really kiss you when I wanted to back when we were going to school together," he explained. Looking down at his hands, a sad smile came to Nitori's face. "I mean...I've always looked up to you, Rin-senpai. Even if you didn't see me the way that I wanted you to, I still felt a sense of longing for you...so I hoped that someday, I would be able to meet you again, when I wasn't the scared little boy that you knew, so that I could work up the courage to kiss you."

Looking back up at Rin, a gleam came to Nitori's eyes, shining brightly in determination. "Kissing you in the pool was my way of showing you that...that I am no longer intimidated by you and that I am willing to pursue you in the way that I wished to back during our school years!" Nitori exclaimed, his face becoming hot.

"Eh?!" Rin exclaimed, a blush of his own coming to his face. It came to no real surprise that Nitori admitted to having a crush on him, but the thought that he was so...blunt about it really caught him off guard.

Nitori just kept surprising him more and more.

Feeling Nitori's hands rest on his shoulders, Rin frowned a bit at the touch. However, he did nothing to move the hand away from his shoulder. Instead, he just looked at the third year curiously. There were a bunch of emotions running through Rin's head, most of which he could barely even comprehend, let alone show. Embarrassment, irritation, curiosity, contentment...it was a strange array of feelings.

"And what makes you think that I'll even agree to being pursued by you?" the redhead asked with a raised eyebrow.

For a moment, Nitori started at Rin with a vulnerable expression, a frown on his face. "You...I...I had been hoping that...maybe...," he trailed off, stammering a bit.

Staring at the grey-haired boy at he tried to answer, Rin just rolled his eyes and sighed. Perhaps that hadn't been the question that he should have asked. After all, it wasn't like he really had anything against Nitori wanting to pursue him in a relationship. Sure, he'd like to actually be asked as opposed to having a tongue shoved down his throat. But...he...

He wasn't opposed to it.

Scratching the back of his head, Rin clicked his tongue. "Just stop, brat. I...I understand what you're trying to say. And...I see no qualms against...being pursued, as you called it."

Nitori froze immediately and he stared wide eyed at Rin for a few moments before tears came to his eyes and a smile came to his face. The smile on his face was enough to probably split it right in half, and yet it seemed as though it grew larger by the second. Then, Nitori's arms shot out, hugging Rin tightly. A gasp left the redhead's mouth as arms wrapped around his body tightly and wetness pressed against the crook of his neck. Not quite sure what to say or do, his hands hovered in the air behind Nitori's back before they hesitantly rested on the third year's back.

"N-Nitori...stop crying...," Rin said in embarrassment, his stomach starting to twist up again.

However, it didn't appear as though Nitori heard him, as the younger male continued to cry against him. Unable to really do anything else, since Nitori's grip was that tight, Rin just pressed his back against the door and held the grey-haired boy. A faint smile came to his face and he shut his eyes for a moment, just basking in the moment.

* * *

**A/N: Really cheesy and didn't end the way that I thought that it would. **


End file.
